Google Advertising Doesn’t Put You On The Map, Google Puts Its Map Over Your Advertising!

Google have been ramping up their efforts over the past year to become a major player in the local market. Their attempts to buy Groupon, and the roll out of Hotpot suggests they are extremely serious about this direction.

 In a bid to increase their strength in this area they are constantly testing and tweaking the layout of their search results page.

One day the “7 Pack” of local businesses “Places” ads will be prominently displayed at the top of the first page, the next day I perform the search I find that the Google Places ads are blended in with the rest of the organic results.

 It’s the same with the map, one day the map is at the top of the page, the next it’s on the right.

 I understand that they need to test different layouts to find out what works best for themselves and the user, after all they are a commercial company and, as any public company should, it is seeking to maximise revenue for its shareholders.

This is why I find there latest offering so puzzling. It doesn’t benefit the user, the advertiser, and ultimately, therefore, Google themselves.

I logged into Google and performed a search for the phrase “commercial carpet cleaning”. The phrase doesn’t matter so much; it’s what I discovered that’s the shocker.

 When the results were returned, the page was displaying 3 paid ads at the top, followed by a couple of organic search results below, and then some Google shopping results. Over on the right, I had the map at the top and some more Google Adwords ads below.

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Nothing earth shattering so far.

Because of the map on the right hand side there are only 3 Adwords ads displaying “above the fold”.

The shock came when I scrolled down to see the results that were further down the page.

As I scrolled down, the text of the page moved upwards, BUT the map retained it’s position on the page, obscuring the Adwords ads as they moved underneath the map.

 It went from this… to this!

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 to this!

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If I was www.allcarecleaning.co.uk I would not be happy… at all.

They were positioned at the top of the right hand results and presumably paying Google a higher rate to be there, and now when anyone scrolls down the page they disappear. Why on earth would Google hide a significant revenue stream like this?

 Why would a company deliberately annoy the people who are wanting to give it money?

 I personally don’t get it.

 I thought about this for a while and one reason I came up with was that maybe Google are going to go to a paid Google Places model and force local businesses to pay if they want to retain their current position at the top of the search engine results page.

 This is pure speculation of course, but it makes sense. The positioning of the “7 Pack” of Google Places results is prime Google real estate.

 Only time will tell, but I don’t know of any business that can get away with charging customers to advertise with them and then cover their ads up with their own advertising. Not for long anyway.

Just How Good Are Carpet Cleaners Really?

That's a fair question I guess.

 

Exactly how effective are carpet cleaning companies at removing dirt from your carpet?

 

Let me ask you this. If a carpet cleaning company were able to remove dirt from an industrially used carpet, do you think they would be able to remove dirt from your domestic carpet?

 

I would think the answer there would be a big fat yes.

 

Now, what if a carpet cleaning company were able to remove dirt from an industrial setting? No, I haven't gone mad and repeated the same sentence. This time I'm talking about a carpet cleaning company being able to clean an industrial setting.

 

How industrial? I'm glad you asked. How about a water tower from a sewage plant?

 

Yep. Anglian Water is in talks with a local carpet cleaning company to ascertain whether they can clean the tower rather than go to the expense of painting it.

 

The full story is here: http://www.spaldingtoday.co.uk/news/business/local-businesses/spalding_water_tower_exterior_cleaned_like_a_carpet_1_2314475

 

So if a carpet cleaning company can clean a water tower, I'm pretty sure they'll do a fantastic job on your carpet.

 

Take care,

 

Ian

 

I Didn't Want To Do Carpet Cleaning So I picked This Instead...

We all know carpet cleaning can be a dirty job but below I've reprinted an article about a business two mother's have set which is not to be sniffed at.

There business is all about cleaning up SNOT.

Yep, snot, bogies, grollies, whatever you want to call it. And they're doing very well!

The link to this article is http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE70B6SH20110112

 

By Deborah L. Cohen

CHICAGO | Wed Jan 12, 2011 4:39pm EST

 

CHICAGO (Reuters) -- Cleaning out the snot-filled noses of children has become an entrepreneurial success story for Julie Pickens. She just wished her kids were more impressed.

"It's kind of gross," confessed Pickens, 44, who launched Boogie Wipes (www.boogiewipes.com) with fellow mother and co-founder Mindee Doney, 35, in the spring of 2008. "It's kind of a funny business to be in, not your norm. We built a business around boogers."

Pickens, whose daughter was initially "embarrassed" by the business, readily laughs about snot and all its permutations - even the irony of her own last name. But she doesn't joke around about revenues, noting Boogie Wipes' sales are projected to reach $10 million in 2011, compared to less than $1 million the first year.

The Beaverton, Oregon venture has carved out a niche in the massive personal care industry by infusing hygienic wipes with saline to gently clean up the crusty noses of children beset with colds and flu.

"I track flu season now and I wait for it to hit," said Pickens, whose product is awaiting patent approval. "I hate to say that, but it really does help our sales."

The product was born out of personal need. When Doney's fussy young daughter refused to let her apply saline drops to her runny nose, Doney instead put the saline on a wet wipe and inadvertently created the Boogie Wipes prototype.

Doney then ran her business idea by Pickens, whom she had originally met while working as a marketing consultant. Pickens, a former sales representative for Miller Brewing and former owner of several Cold Stone Creamery ice cream franchises, agreed to buy in.

Using about $40,000 of their own money, the pair concocted their special boogie solution that combined ingredients such as vitamin E, aloe and chamomile with the saline.

WIPING UP

Neil Stern, a senior partner with the Chicago-based retail-consulting firm McMillan Doolittle, said Boogie Wipes is building on a pattern of innovation that has positioned various forms of disposable wipes as methods of delivery for liquid products, ranging from furniture polish to eyeglass cleaner.

"There's been a lot of category extension," Stern said. "What else can it do? This is one of the areas."

It didn't hurt that Boogie Wipes managed to launch at a time when retailers were looking to fill vacant shelf space after the Food and Drug Administration restricted the use of some over-the-counter cold medications for young children.

"They say timing is everything," Pickens said. "Buyers were looking for things to accommodate nervous moms and dads."

Boogie Wipes quickly caught on, expanding distribution to major retailers such as Wal-Mart, Rite Aid and Costco. The wipes, which sell for about $4 for a 30-tissue pack, have also carved out sales in international markets such as Canada, Australia and Singapore.

"It's been a phenomenal product," said Miriam Gassel, a buyer for Quidsi Inc., operator of the Diapers.com website, which carries a full line of products for young children and has offered Boogie Wipes since early 2009. "Our biggest challenge has been keeping it in stock."

Carpet Cleaning Methods Explained - Encapsulation Cleaning

The encapsulation method of carpet cleaning was developed primarily for use in the commercial setting, where it’s very low moisture level and quick drying times meant carpet cleaning resulted in minimal disruption to business activities

Now, though, this unique carpet cleaning technology is being seen more often in the domestic setting, as consumers who are fed up with their carpets taking days or hours to dry out after traditional “steam cleaning” are looking for more user-friendly modern, carpet cleaning methods

So how does encapsulation cleaning work? We spoke to cleaning specialists Proclean Domestic Cleaning Glasgow for further information. 

Central to this process is unique polymer chemistry which is applied to the carpeting in the form of a liquid solution which then forms encapsulating crystals as it dries out.

The first stage of the process – as it should be with any carpet cleaning technique – is to thoroughly vacuum the carpet to be cleaned. If you do not remove the dry soil by vacuuming, then applying a cleaning solution to the carpeting will effectively cause mud residues to be formed in the carpet fibres.

When you have finished with the initial vacuuming, it is time to apply the encapsulation chemical, by spraying it directly on to the carpet. For best results it is worthwhile leaving the cleaning agent to "dwell" for a few moments before brushing it carefully through the carpet, ideally in a north-south-east-west direction. This brushing is vital to the success of the cleaning project and can be done with a range of equipment, from a bonnet buffer to a contra-rotating brush machine.

It is then all about letting the technology get to work. Then the cleaning agent must dry - taking usually around twenty or thirty minutes - during which time the soil in the carpet is suspended in a brittle crystal residue. The last stage is to remove these crystals which is done by vacuuming them away either at the time of the initial clean or subsequently. Any crystals which are not removed by vacuuming at the time of the initial clean remain suspended by the technology and can be removed by subsequent vacuuming.

So, in summary, there are a number of persuasive reasons for choosing encapsulation cleaning for your home or office carpets, over more traditional – some might say old-fashioned – alternatives:

Encapsulation carpet cleaning uses very low amounts of water so your carpets can be back in use very quickly, typically in around one hour after cleaning has been completed. This makes encapsulation cleaning particularly useful not only in the home, but also where long down-time after cleaning is not convenient, for example in hotels, guest houses or offices

The minimal amounts of water used in encapsulation cleaning means it is the perfect professional carpet cleaning method to use to ensure no damage to computer, telephone and other cabling found in offices, often concealed within suspended flooring, which might be prone to over wetting using other techniques.